Lunch and Learn

As a Visiting Scholar, one of my jobs is to observe all kinds of classes. The first class I attended was taught by Lynda Hartel,  associate professor and associate director for Knowledge Integration. After Lynda’s class, Stephanie Schulte invited me to attend her class. Stephanie is the head of Research & Education in the Health Sciences Library. Her class surprised me even more.

On March 8th, at around 11:40am, Stephanie stopped by my office to get me. She was taking me to grand rounds in Starling loving Hall. It was a typical, cold winter day in Columbus, so Stephanie decided to use the underground tunnel to get to the class. The long tunnel was just like a puzzle, with many exits.  I bet you would get lost if nobody was showing the way. Fortunately, I was with Stephanie. Just a few minutes later, we got to the classroom.

Once I walked in the room, I was shocked by what I saw. I stopped, I was not sure if I was supposed to keep going.  I thought I was in the wrong room. In front of me,  I saw a long dining table with a lot of foods and drinks. There was bread, rice, roast beef, salads, beans and soft drinks. They made my stomach growl. Two people were setting the table and preparing the food. It looked like they were going to have a party.  I thought to myself: “I am going to a class, not a party. If this is the right room, am I supposed to join in and eat? I didn’t recall Stephanie had ever mentioned lunch or party. “Do not do anything stupid. Just wait and see what Stephanie does.” I watched. Physicians walked in, grabbed some food and sat down. Meanwhile Stephanie set up the computer and got ready for the class. At noon, Stephanie started her lecture while the physicians were eating.

Eating while learning, it was interesting. Food is not allowed in class at my school. Actually most schools in China, eating while the teacher is teaching or talking is considered rude and disrespectful. Food is not even allowed in our library buildings. But here you can eat while the professor is teaching, that is a huge difference, but I like it a lot! It was informal, it was more relaxing, it can save you time. I love the idea!

I posted about Lunch and Learn on WeChat, the most popular social media in China, I got a lot of comments.  Everybody loved the idea. Many of them said if there was a Lunch- and- Learn, they would like to go every day.

OSU’s Hogwarts

Two weeks ago, I had a really interesting trip to the library Depository.

On the afternoon of May 26th, Lynda took us, a group of OSU library newbies, to visit the library Depository. The Depository is 2.5 miles away from the main campus. From the outside, it just looks like a warehouse without windows. From the inside, the Depository doesn’t look anything like a normal library. The book stacks are high up, probably 30 feet, and almost reach the celling of the building.  The books are sorted by size and placed in the boxes. If a request comes in for a book stored high up, depository employees have to use a ‘Cherry Picker’ to retrieve it. Some students say the depository looks like a scene from Hogwarts in Harry Potter.  I showed photos to some of my friends, many of them said the depository looks really like a scene from one of the Harry Potter movies.

Depository picture 1  OSU Depository order picker 06.13.16 (2)

You might wonder why do we need a Depository? Why do we need a high-density storage and high-tech building depository to house library materials?

The reason to build the depository is to free up space on main campus for active learning. Because traditional collection storage and management practices have changed dramatically, our libraries need more room to meet the need for current materials, collaborative study, technology and social activities.  And as a major research university, OSU is obligated to preserve the books. It is one of the library’s functions.  The books could be digitized, and some are or will be, but they may lose something in the process. It is similar to the difference between a person and picture of a person.

Visiting the Depository reminds me of my library in Zhengzhou. Our new library is a ten-story building. It has approximately 2,000 seats. Although 2,000 seats might seem like a lot, there are over 20,000 students at my school. As you can imagine, there is competition for seats at the library, especially during finals. To overcome the problem, the students are required to make reservations for the seats. If we had more high density stacks, or if we had a depository,   we could free up space to allow more seating for the students.

The first class I observed

I arrived in Columbus on February 29th, I have been here at Ohio State University for a little over three months. Even though it has been  three months, it feels like only yesterday. In that time, I have been to many meetings,  monthly educational meetings, unit meetings, staff meetings, lots meetings. I have observed several classes, like Lynda Hartel’s lecture on the concept of evidence-based integrative medicine and Stephanie Schulte’s classes on Evidence. I also have attended many seminars, workshops, and conferences. Some of these  were hosted by our library, some were hosted by various colleges. I also have met and talked with eight science librarians. Every day,  I am exploring. Every day, I am experiencing a new and different world, a different language, a different culture, a different people.  Every day, I keep my eyes wide open so I can see as much as I can. There are many exciting opportunities. There also are challenges. Today  I still clearly remember the first day I went to work, I still remember the first class I observed. It was just like yesterday.

On my second day at OSU, my supervisor Lynda Hartel invited me to observe her  class. Class started at 8am. Having just arrived in Columbus, I was still staying with some friends while looking for a place to live. Now I had one of my first challenges.  “How can I get there in time? I don’t have a car, I am not familiar with buses. These are the ways I usually travel to school in China.  It is my second day in Columbus, I know nothing about it getting around, but I have to get to school by 7:30am to meet Lynda. Taxi? No, I have to call the cab company to make a reservation, it is too complicated and expensive.  Uber? I have heard it is very easy and convenient to use, but I never tried it in China, mostly because I have my own car. ” I decided to use Uber.  I got up about 5am, and got ready. I was a little worried, because I didn’t want to be late. Much to my relief, Uber was as efficient in Columbus as my friends said it was in Zhengzhou. I made it to school on time. Yeah!

At 7:50am, Lynda and I got to the classroom. Professor Diane Habash and some students were there waiting for us. The classroom was no different than the classrooms in China.  At 8:00, Lynda didn’t start the class, instead, Diane started to play music, a slow, quiet, beautiful classical music. it was unexpected. In China, we do not play music in class. While the music was playing, she calmed the students by telling them to close their eyes and breath slowly and deeply.. The whole process probably lasted five minutes, it was so good, I felt so calm, so relaxed. Then Lynda started the lecture. She was talking about the concept of evidence-based integrative medicine. I could tell she was very familiar with the topic, she engaged the students asking them questions.  The students actively responded asking many questions. It was great to see the interactions between Lynda and the students. The students really enjoyed Lynda’s class. It was a very interesting and very different class. I really liked it. Lynda did a great job.

Lynda’s class was very different than the typical class at my school in China. At my school, the professor lectures and the students listen. There is usually very little back and forth between the students and the professor. It makes me wonder if the students are bored. Are they even listening? In Lynda’s class it was clear that the students were interested. They were engaged and responsive. And , it was clear that they were enjoying the learning experience.

 

Introduction

Hello! My name is Yang Chunli, or as you say in America, Chunli Yang.

I am a Visiting Scholar at the Health Sciences Library of the Ohio State University. As a visiting scholar, I will be spending the next year studying OSU’s library system and the way OSU’s faculty and students use the libraries.  Through this blog, I hope to share some of my experiences at OSU and the United States. I also hope to tell you a little bit about myself, my life in China, and my work experience at Henan University of Technology.

At the Henan University of Technology, I am an associate professor and research librarian. I mainly teach information retrieval classes to graduate and undergraduate students.  Beyond teaching, I help faculty from the Mechanical Engineering school conduct research into areas they study.  More recently, I have been serving as an English-to-Chinese interpreter for classes in Photography and Business Communications.

I look forward to sharing my experiences with you throughout this year. If you have questions or information to share with me, please add a comment to the blog posting or email me at chunli.yang@osumc.edu.